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Email Marketing
Award Winners 2006
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Email Marketing Award Winner
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Best Welcome Letter:
Silver (tie)
Intercontinental Hotels - Hotel Indigo


Brand/Client Side Team:
Erin Hake

Vendors/Agencies
Spunlogic

MarketingSherpa Summary - Why They Won:
Color us stunned. When we first heard about the Hotel Indigo "haiku" marketing campaign it sounded kind of … high concept/low clicks. But, boy do they know their target audience. Suffice to say, the click rate is *astonishing*. Proves that subtle offers and compelling branding can work without a slam-you-upside-the-head response button. For those of us who are a little tired of our email screaming out offers at us, this trend is extremely reassuring.

From Their Nomination Form:
New subscribers to the Hotel Indigo email list. The goal of the campaign is to confirm opt-in to the Hotel Indigo email list, inform the recipient of the different Hotel Indigo locations and encourage them to visit the Website – all while staying within the boundaries of the brand. What we mean by this becomes apparent when you view the email that has taken the standard, usually boring opt-in confirmation and turned it into an experience through the use of haiku and visual appeal. You’ll notice the use of haiku across all Hotel Indigo touchpoints – in the hotel, on the Website, in email (both transactional and promotional) and more. The haiku in this message: Thank You for Joining,/What am I Getting,/You AskNews, Offers and Such. The haiku is the only text in the message and is an interesting way to say thank you to each subscriber, while intriguing them to seek more. Again, what makes this email special is the use of haiku and visual elements to extend the Hotel Indigo brand. A standard, ho-hum confirmation email is transformed into a branded, informative haiku that engages the audience in going back to the Website. 96% delivery rate; 74% HTML open rate; 61% clickthrough rate.

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